


Hold the Door

by sheepkun



Category: Persona 3, Persona 4, Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth, Persona Series
Genre: AU: Programmer Minato and HR Yu, Don't copy to another site, I will learn to tag one day not today, Loosely basing personalities off PQ and Dance, M/M, Minato is absolutely non-stop snarky, Minato's dry commentary, Not so much slow burn as just ridiculous denial, The most self-indulgent of things, Yu Narukami's bad sense of humor
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-10
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-13 19:33:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 5,756
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28658772
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sheepkun/pseuds/sheepkun
Summary: Minato kind of just puts up with Yu Narukami every morning. Until he starts wondering if he's single. Things derail from there.
Relationships: Arisato Minato/Narukami Yu, Persona 3 Protagonist/Persona 4 Protagonist
Comments: 2
Kudos: 47





	1. First Floor

**Author's Note:**

> It feels like forever since I've posted a fic. I had a bunch of snippets lying around but everything seemed to lead to a dead end. Finally, this idea came to me while waiting for the elevator. I hope it brings some joy to everyone's day. As usual, I prepare you all for me absolutely making the Persona protagonists out to be whatever I interpret them as-  
> Thank you for reading!

**Preface: 1st Floor**

Minato's life is a wash cycle: clean, rinse, repeat. He wakes up in a the morning because he has to, the ringing of his alarm too annoying to ignore. He downs two cups of coffee on an empty stomach, the thought of ingesting anything solid before ten in the morning simply nauseating.

He goes to work feeling like the dead and comes back home feeling like the dead revived, always at the same time as his neighbor across the hall, like clockwork.

The man seems to run on something contrary to anything Minato can imagine. Maybe sunlight, kind of like tacky, knock off calculators. Unfortunately, they always rode the elevator together, at eight and at six, sharp, with a few seconds give or take, which meant Minato had to put up with the early-bird energy.

Minato works a 9 to 5 at an app company, which in theory sounds unrealistic, but he's always bringing work home to remain up to industry standards. It's not like he's a productive person in the morning anyhow. Ideally, his wish is to work at home, period. But it's hard being pick and choosy with bills to pay.

Sometimes he wonders as to what his neighbors profession is, considering he's always carrying a can-do air to him despite his perfectly impassive features. The fact that he wishes Minato 'good morning' every day inspite of Minato's refusal to even open his mouth didn't narrow down that many career paths.

It had been another sleepless night and Minato's ready to glare holes into the elevator button when pep-in-his-step, faithful as always, rounds the corner, seeming for once in the half-year they'd been inhabiting the same building, like he'd woken up on the wrong side of the bed. Maybe he was human after all.

"Thanks," he says breathless, seeing Minato had held open the door. "And good morning."

So much for being human.

"You're late."

He glances as if trying to find out whether it was truly Minato that had spoken.

"No, I'm Yu Narukami, but I suppose the minutes got away from me today."

He laughs as if he hadn't just made the worst joke in history, making Minato feel like he'd lost years off of his already short life span.

"I should have left you to take the stairs."

Narukami, as he'd valiantly introduced himself, merely crinkles his eyes, rushing off with a wave over his head once they reach the lobby. Minato bangs his head on the panel before following suit.


	2. Second Floor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story is actually turning out to be a lot of fun to write: something about basing Minato around all those snide dialogue options is throwing my writer's block out the window. Please enjoy!

**2nd Floor  
**

"Good morning!"

Without fault, rain or shine, Narukami's there, with a greeting, and a hand holding the door as if making up for that one act of arbitrary and arguable kindness Minato had offered. Every day, Narukami's there with his crisp shirts, neat tie, bag slung over his shoulder, seeming so put together it was boggling.

It had been like that for the past six months since he'd moved in, but it'd only gotten worse after Minato had made the mistake of remotely interacting with him.

A week goes by, Minato hasn't even introduced himself yet, pointedly of course, but Narukami slowly evolves from 'good morning' to 'how are you' in the span of those seven days, either unperturbed or clueless.

It didn't help that he had the awful bonus of being charming. Yukari often said Minato was charming as well, otherwise he wouldn't get away with being half as biting as he was. He didn't think he was that bad, he just liked being left to his own devices and it wasn't his fault others didn't respect that. Narukami was definitely charming though, in the inexplicable way friendly people often were.

And somehow he was making Minato feel rude without even trying.

Which is probably why, he goes completely against his plans and actually makes an effort for once.

"So, what's your story?"

"Pardon?" Minato almost cringes. "Ah! Work? I'm in HR. You?"

Being HR certainly explained a lot if Minato went off stereotypes. He wonders vaguely which company Narukami worked for, and if he was always that congenial while sat in his office, solving problems between co-workers and inspecting CVs.

Probably.

"Programming."

Narukami makes an appropriately impressed sound as the elevator lurches to a stop. "I'm not good with numbers."

"I'm no good with people."

He thinks it's Narukami's laugh that echoes around at this. He's too dazed by it to be sure.

* * *

Mitsuru regards him curiously once he's comfortable in his desk, stalling everything he had to get done. If he wasn't suffering in the crowds of the subway he was suffering through traffic or in the elevator, he deserved at least a half-hour of staring blankly off into space.

"Arisato, you're smiling."

Minato attempts to find his reflection on the monitor of his computer. It doesn't take him off guard that Mitsuru had appeared behind him with no warning. She was prone to making her rounds unannounced.

"No, I'm not."

Mitsuru hums, mirthful. "Perhaps not literally."

He's about to say there's no such thing as figuratively smiling, but Mitsuru's got a content set to her face, and she's his supervisor. He wasn't about to push his luck.

"Whatever the case, I'm glad you found something to put that fire back in you."

He continues to have no idea what she's talking about, especially considering he couldn't recall ever really having any form of fire, flame or even warmth. Even if he did, the air conditioning in the office would freeze it faster than he could make use of it.

He frowns at his keyboard. He didn't feel any different. He hoped that his figurative smiling didn't become a habit. Heavens forbid he became someone who actually enjoyed the mornings.

* * *

"Seriously?" Minato says, immediately, just to be spiteful. He'd taken a solid fifteen extra minutes to arrive home due to transit being terrible, and somehow he still managed to not avoid Narukami.

It seemed almost like some sort of conspiracy.

"Good evening to you too." Narukami hums, not missing a beat as he leans against the mirror. He runs a nervous hand through his hair, as if somehow he seemed disheveled beyond the obvious flush to his cheeks.

"Hm." Minato scuffs his shoe. "Were you drinking?"

"Yes. Work party, it's Friday after all."

Minato had a very good record of never having attended a single company function at all. Fridays were for gaming, and for pretending like he didn't have deadlines until Sunday.

"How diligent."

Narukami chuckles, tugging slightly at his collar. They arrive. "I try to be." his teeth are infuriatingly white as he gently shuts the door to his apartment.


	3. Third Floor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes I go back to P3Dance to put cat ears on everyone. Minato's dialogue options are still 100% my basis for his persona here (Persona, hah-forgive me). Anyhow, please enjoy some form of development? Thanks for the kudos, it's honestly been hard to write or do anything but this has been a nice break. I hope everyone is well and staying safe.

**3rd Floor**

Minato would have thought there'd be some unspoken rule in place that kept him from meeting Narukami on weekends.

Unfortunately, the moment he's kicking Yukari out of his apartment, Narukami's stepping out into the hall, two re-usable bags around his wrist and a pair of glasses on the edge of his nose.

"Oh, hello."

Polite as usual, Narukami smiles.

"I didn't think Minato still knew how to make friends!"

Minato knows the jab is due to him having left Yukari on read for a good two days, but he doesn't appreciate Narukami's chuckle.

"We're just neighbors," his eyes light up for a moment. "Though since he's here, it reminds me that I was going to ask for an IT recommendation."

"Ooh," Yukari nods, still blocking Minato's frame. "Computer problems?"

"Yeah, I'm generally alright with them..." he trails off.

"Not this time though, huh?" Yukari's got a sort of teasing tone to her voice when she speaks. "Why call IT when you can just have Minato take a look?"

Narukami blinks, as if the thought had never once crossed his mind. Minato immediately frowns with as much force as he can, hoping the message gets through the rather thick, friendly skull.

"I wouldn't want to impose."

Yukari makes a motion. "It's fine. He's happy to help!"

Minato was in fact not happy at all.

Narukami must catch his eyes, because he does not seem convinced, even with his expression staying impressively unchanged.

"I'll bring it around later then." Hopefully a bluff to get Yukari off their case. If he actually did make an attempt Minato would play dead and not answer the door. Not that he had a habit of answering the door. Yukari and Junpei had copies of the keys for a reason.

Narukami bows his head slightly, moving towards the elevator. "Have a good weekend. Nice meeting you, Miss Takeba."

"H-how'd you know my name?"

Narukami stops.

"I love your commercial, of course I'd recognize you."

Yukari lets out a noise akin to a distant train whistle, rounding on Minato as if to say 'see even strangers watch my work'.

"Bye, Yukari."

"I get it, I'm leaving." She rolls her eyes. "By the way, if he's single, send him my way."

He watches her rush off to catch the elevator with Narukami and dreads the dirt she would dish on him while they were alone.

* * *

Minato very pointedly does not send Narukami over Yukari's way, much as she keeps haggling him about Narukami's relationship status, nor does he make any mention of her again. Likewise, Narukami acts as if he'd never had computer problems, or as if it had all been some sort of excuse.

Minato doesn't ask about it because asking about would mean he cared and that was making himself inadvertently available to help, and there was no way he was enabling Narukami any further, not when they'd derailed from one sided greetings to _small talk_.

"And then Yosuke was-" he blinks as the doors open. "Hah, here's my stop."

It was both their stops and the gimmick had not been funny initially and would likely never be funny. "See you later!"

Minato watches Narukami speed off and disappear out into the street. He was always incredibly fast-paced for someone who came off calm and composed. He slugs his way down the stairs to the parking lot, gets in his car and takes a moment to just breathe against the steering wheel, trying to tap into his reserves before pulling out into reality.

When he returns home, after a long, long day of staring at lines of code and hating every minute of his faultless vision, it's to the sight of the usually empty elevator crowded with his usual rock in the shoe, and an unfamiliar man in an IT uniform.

Minato makes some excuse about having forgotten something in his car, watches the numbers go up, frowning at the smile Narukami had given him.

He watches an hour later, through the peep-hole of his door as the IT leaves, only to wonder why he was so curious and pent up about it in the first place. What Narukami did outside their limited elevator space was none of his business. In fact, he kind of would have liked for nothing related to Narukami to ever be his business, only to immediately act like Narukami hiring someone to fix his computer was some sort of offense.

He's glad when the weekend comes around and he has plans with Junpei. He's not so glad when Narukami is in the elevator with him.

"Did you get your computer fixed?"

"Yes, I did." Narukami looks at him, apparently playing at painfully unaware. "Thanks."

"That's good then."

The quiet stretches, and Minato finds himself growing increasingly not-calm at the situation.

* * *

"Is it illegal to break into someone's home and wreck their laptop?"

"Uh, probably?" Junpei seems scandalized for a moment, looking away from the window display he'd been fussing at to spare Minato a glance. "Are you trying to win someone over?"

Minato shakes his head as Junpei's lecherous grin drops. "It's my neighbor."

"Dude. What've you got against them?"

Minato's fingers thrum around his milkshake. "Nothing."

And really, it was nothing. He didn't have a sole reason to be upset. He'd been the one to clam up and draw a line in the sand in the first place. Still, Narukami knew Minato _could_ have fixed his computer. In theory. "It's a matter of pride."

Junpei looks appropriately confused and Minato doesn't bother explaining.

He's feeling a little better about it all after their excruciating two-hour arcade trip, and he's ready to fall straight onto the couch and wake up at 3am as usual only for the sight of Narukami, dressed casually and with his glasses on the bridge of his nose stops him. He wonders if his frames didn't fit him or if he simply thought it was nicer that way.

"That's my house."

"Yes. I know."

He stares at the computer under Narukami's arm and feels oddly vindicated.

"Sorry to bother you but-"

Minato unlocks the door, remembers he hadn't cleaned up in a week and decides he doesn't care.

"Come in."


	4. Fourth Floor

**4th Floor**

Minato's self-conscious, in some deep recess of his mind. It's not the piled up dishes or the array of wires that he never bothered to organize that caused the underlying layer of discomfort. Rather it's the way he's used to only having the same two people sat with their legs tucked under his coffee table, and it bothers him how Narukami strangely doesn't seem too out of place, cross-legged and expectant as Minato clatters away. He sends him off a good hour later, ignoring the overly-polite 'thank you' and sagging against the lingering of his shower gel in the air. A part of him feels vindicated, but it's not enough to have him ever wanting Narukami in his apartment ever again.

That felt like completely obliterating the lines between them.

On Sunday there's a knock on his door that Minato only glances up at and makes no move to act upon. He hadn't called for food, and Junpei and Yukari could always let themselves in.

There's a knock again, a bit more firm. He frowns. No one ever bothered him on the weekends, and no one he was close to ever bothered to _knock_ , which meant only one thing. His peace surely was short-lived.

Minato mentally makes a long suffering sound, sliding from the couch to the floor before dragging his feet to the door. He makes sure he looks appropriately inconvenienced as he opens it.

"Narukami. What happened this time?"

"Good evening," he holds up a container of food, still warm from the looks of it. "Nothing, my laptop's just fine, but I wanted to thank you properly. You haven't had dinner yet, I hope?"

Minato has a habit of haphazardly skipping whichever meal he's too lazy to prep or order, which consequently meant he'd been focusing on a level in Mario Odyssey and had not in fact, had dinner. Nor had he been planning to, the stock of snacks in the cupboard were going to be a decent enough substitute. He refrains from saying all this and instead settles on a simple 'no'.

"Great. Then here. I'm no Master Chef but I know my way around a kitchen."

Gingerly, as if it could bite him, Minato accepts the Tupperware. It was very much still warm. His stomach grumbles traitorously as he gets a whiff of whatever Narukami had made.

"Thanks."

Narukami grins. "I hope you like it. I'll let you get back to your business."

Minato settles on his couch again as soon as he's alone. He eats, he scrapes the container, thinks about licking it. He wasn't feeling particularly hungry, and it wasn't a particularly remarkable meal, but something about the homemade wholesomeness of it had struck a chord he'd long thought had withered in him. He regrets not saving some for his lunch Monday, and makes a mental note to wash and return it to Narukami on the way to work.

* * *

Monday rolls around and the Tupperware remains in the sink, filled with water, the same as it had been Sunday evening. Minato sighs, decides he can't really afford the extra few seconds it would take to clean it properly and is making up an excuse as to why he'd forgotten when Narukami steps into the elevator with a lunchbox in hand.

"Good morning,"

It wasn't. It really wasn't. In fact it never was.

"I forgot your..." Minato makes a vague square motion with his hands. Narukami snorts softly, shaking his head.

"It's fine. You can return it to me later, I..." he clears his throat. Minato glances at him. There's an awkward, sort of hesitant quality to his usually nonplussed features. "I actually packed you a lunch."

"You packed me lunch."

"Is that weird?"

Minato stares at the lunchbox. Then at Narukami. He's reminded vaguely of the girls that would occasionally hand him love letters in High School, as if expecting him to rip them up on sight. He'd never quite been able to wrap his head around why he'd been half as popular as he had. He can see how Narukami would be popular, if this was what he was always like.

"You were a big deal in High School, weren't you?"

Narukami actually balks at the heel-face turn. "Sorry?"

The elevator opens again. Minato takes the lunchbox, holds it carefully in his hands.

"Never mind, thanks for lunch."

It becomes habit. Kind of like the rest of their alternate elevator reality, only it's a nice habit because it means Minato's being well fed for once.

Mitsuru keeps pointing out how much better Minato looks due to it. Yukari comments on the containers piled up in his kitchen sink with vague suspicion.

Minato in turn, keeps Narukami's sudden involvement in his life under lock and key. He did not want to deal with prying questions, and it wasn't as if they were actually even that close. Narukami was just oddly pushy. Though perhaps pushy wasn't the word. Minato had been the one to relent and let him in first. From there on Narukami had just decided that he'd show his gratitude by sharing his leftovers and making him lunch.

It was like the time Minato had held open the elevator door but worse, because apparently Narukami's whole life had been on that laptop and it seemed that by saving his whole life Minato had gained things he'd never asked for.

And to think it all started because he'd gotten a virus just a few days after the IT had come fix the hinges.

"Here."

Narukami stares at the backpack full of plastic and glass containers alike.

"This will be kind of hard to carry in the bus."

"You don't have a car?"

"I don't have a car. I never really saw the need for one." he's about to pick up the straps when Minato tugs it away.

"Fine. I'll drive you then."

"To and _from_ work?"

"Sure. We live in the same building anyways, big deal."

Huge deal. But Minato suddenly felt very guilty for hoarding Narukami's things for as long as he had and consequently inconveniencing him. It wasn't as if a bit longer pushing through traffic would be his demise.

It turns out Narukami's office is in the building across from his and Minato wonders very earnestly about that conspiracy he'd been starting to draw up as he parks.

* * *

He invites Narukami for dinner. Not because he wanted to further whatever budding pseudo-friendship was growing between them, but because Narukami had been solely responsible for the improvement of his diet over the course of two weeks and Minato was a lot of things but he wasn't ungrateful.

Of course, it's Yukari that gives him the idea after he can no longer hide the fact that he hadn't actually gotten his life together and that it was in fact Narukami that was making all his meals.

"He's such a catch! You're so lucky! I'm amazed you you're getting along, you're usually pretty antisocial."

"Am not."

He was. But it was hard to complain when allowing room for Narukami had more pros than pushing him away.

That didn't mean that Minato felt any better about the cheerful 'good mornings'. If anything, them getting close made it worse because Minato somehow got hung up on the fact that he had to be _nice_ to Narukami, even in his head. It made sense to be nice to the guy who took it upon himself to start giving you a homemade lunchbox because 'he'd had extra time' and he was grateful for that one limited act of kindness.

Narukami is delighted at the invitation. At least, Minato thinks he is. He's always rather appropriately good-humored, which made it hard to tell. But they decide to meet up at the noodle shop just down the corner from their offices, right after work.

This means Minato arrives, immediately bangs his head onto the open space on the counter and tries to ignore the headache he was starting to feel. He did not cope well with group meetings. Narukami appears not much later, seemingly unruffled as usual, save for the lack of his tie and his rolled up sleeves.

When he settles on the bench near him, Minato catches a whiff of what seems to be cologne, and he wonders if Narukami had honest to God freshened up before coming. He stares vacantly down at his rumpled sweater and assumes he has an equally rumpled expression and almost feels bad.

Almost.

They order appetizers, drinks, and Minato loosens slowly, taking in the way Narukami goes from composed to practically leaning all his weight on a hand, a slight flush to his ears. There's a bit of matting on his bangs from where the heat of the broth had likely worked up a sweat, and for as first in all the days they'd been around each other, Minato is struck by the realization that Yu Narukami is actually rather good looking.

Which is, in hindsight, a very terrible conclusion to come to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Development? So soon? It's more likely than you think. I'm playing around with the idea of having a few Yu POVs here and there. I'll try and see if it works out. I always enjoyed how in P4 you could cook and eat with your friends on the rooftop and that's how we got here. I hope you all enjoyed! I'm getting back into the swing of things so the chapters are getting longer and it has been easier to work on other projects! Thank you for the support!


	5. Fifth Floor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realize this took so very long to post and that is partially because A) I got very busy but also B) I wanted to fit too many things into one chapter and it was only after breaking it up that I realized that things were flowing much better and it finally allowed me to post this. I'm sorry for the wait and also I want to thank the comments I received! It really gave me the push I needed. I vaguely remember playing around with maybe a Narukami POV but Minato's dry commentary is too fun to give up for now. I hope you all enjoy this! Next update will hopefully not take as long! <3

**5th Floor**

Minato's so used to seeing Narukami in the mornings that it's jarring when the elevator door closes and he's standing alone, only his reflection in the metal for company. His finger hovers over the button to keep the doors open, thinks about pressing their floor again. Maybe Narukami was late.

He lingers a little in the lobby. Perhaps he's slower to reach his car. He listens to the drip of a distant pipe and fiddles with the radio, sighing as the news claim there'll be traffic on his usual street. He starts the car and pulls out, he'd probably see Narukami when he came back anyhow. It was practically a running gag.

The punch line however, doesn't come. Minato steps out into the hallway alone. Silence save for the distant voices of an apartment above.

He walks into his living room, feeling jet lagged, falls face first onto the couch and only moves again once the sun rises the next morning, to the sound of his phone's alarm vibrating on the coffee table. He shifts, lifts up his button up to sniff at it and contemplates not even changing to go in for work again. It wasn't like anyone would be up close and personal, and he didn't really care about what impression Narukami had of him. Though wearing the same clothes would definitely get his work colleagues gossiping, the headache of which seemed less troublesome than showering and getting changed.

Smelling like mint, and with his bangs pressed to his forehead, Minato steps out into the hallway, frowning at the hesitation of his steps. He cranes his neck to the elevator. The doors are innocently shut, with no broad back standing in front of it. There's no lingering smell of cologne to indicate Narukami had an early start.

"He's dead." is what Minato decides. He stares at a complaint that's been sitting in his inbox for a while. He'd been meaning to deal with the issue, just as he often meant to deal with a lot of things in his life and never got around to any of them, dishes being one of them. Mitsuru would definitely have a few words with him if Costumer Support reached out to her that Minato had _yet_ to even reply to them.

"Did someone you know die? You could have called in."

Speak of the devil.

"It hasn't been confirmed yet."

Mitsuru makes a face as if she's trying to figure out whether or not he's serious. Her gaze lands on his desk. "No lunch today?"

He can see her mind going from A to B and drawing all the wrong conclusions. Her hand lands on his shoulder, patting it in a way that's likely supposed to be comforting. "Finish that off and I'll let you go early for lunch. Give them a call."

Mitsuru wanders off and Minato stares at his screen that had gone dark. Call.

He didn't have Narukami's number. In the midst of lunch exchanges, shared rides, and living across each other, Minato came to the sudden realization that he'd never thought to get Narukami's number.

Well, he'd never really had a _reason_ to ask for Narukami's number. It'd never even crossed his mind. All he had to do was knock if he wanted to check in on the guy anyhow.

* * *

He never knocks. He spends three days over thinking and pretending he's not over thinking while being more productive than he ever has in his two years on the job. He turns down Junpei's invitation to a mixer, though that thankfully doesn't raise any suspicion since generally Minato always turns those down. He calls Yukari to tell her he thinks Narukami may have died and whether or not he should call an ambulance.

"What did you _do_ to him?"

"Nothing." Minato's quick to drawl. He thinks he sounds appropriately not distressed.

"You're saying he suddenly disappeared after you guys went to dinner? Look, I don't want to be the bearer of bad news but doesn't that-"

Minato ends the call. He ignores it when Yukari calls him back, just as he ignores her irritated texts. He only checks back an hour later, as he's trying and failing to fall at least a little bit asleep.

_I'm sorry. I'm sure it wasn't that. Don't worry! He'll show up again soon._

Unfortunately Yukari's words are in vain, seeing as soon is not the next day. Nor the day after that. It's almost a week gone by and Minato still hasn't gone and simply...knocked on the door. Every time he tries something holds him back. Pride, perhaps. He felt like he'd be losing against the Universe if he gave in.

He keeps replaying the dinner in his mind, trying to pick it apart for some mistake that might have driven Narukami away. He'd ever been one to overthink his actions and the fact that he was doing so, especially over Narukami, irritated him more than how bothered he was by the sudden disappearing act.

Yet his brain, rather than offering reasonable input, only flashes with images of Narukami flushed, Narukami laughing, Narukami leaning into his space, the way his eye lashes fanned.

Minato slams his keyboard down so hard it's a wonder it doesn't break. His colleague from a table over sends him a concerned glance before promptly snapping their head away.

He skips lunch. His stomach, spoiled by the short time with Narukami, protests every meal he avoids. He really needed to reprogram himself.

"Just go home." Mitsuru sighs, looking at him with so much pity it's as if Minato had just lost his pet hamster. He does take her up on her offer though, in his haze he'd gotten all his work done, and had only been coming in to the office in hopes that more work would somehow magically pile up just as he hoped Narukami would magically show up inside the elevator again.

For some reason, he takes the stairs two at a time once he's home and has to gasp for a few minutes by the gaudy fire door, lungs heaving.

It figures that it's just as he's coming to terms with how he probably should get back to at least doing mild exercise, that he hears Narukami's voice, like an angel beckoning him to Heaven. Which was a terrible comparison, Minato didn't believe in Heaven and Narukami wasn't an angel.

He blinks at the concerned face staring down at him, glasses, gray sweatshirt, a ton of bags hanging off his elbows. The light from the hallway sets a blinding halo over Narukami's gray head and Minato kind of hates how the world seems to always be conspiring against him.

"Are you okay?"

"Fine." Minato stands properly, pushes his bangs back. "You."

"I'm...fine?" it sounds like a question, right down to the soft tilting laugh at the end.

"You disappeared."

He almost bites his tongue. Saying it like that makes him seem desperate, like he'd missed Narukami, like he was worried. He hadn't missed him, it had just been inconvenient. And he certainly hadn't worried.

"Oh." Narukami regards him for a moment that feels far too long.

"I was hungry." Minato tacks on, before Narukami, like Mitsuru, can get the wrong idea.

Something warm crosses Narukami's face. The halo of light from the hall moves with him, shopping bags crinkling like feathered wings.

"In that case...do you want to come in?"

The obvious, clear answer is: no, absolutely not.

Minato hesitates anyhow, heart hammering as if struggling to find oxygen.

* * *

Narukami had gone to visit his family in the countryside. Family being his Uncle, cousin and a ragtag bunch of friends that he proudly showed Minato a picture of. Parents were never mentioned, and though curiosity does tickle at the corner of Minato's mind, he doesn't ask about it. In fact, he doesn't utter a single one of the thousands of questions in his mind.

Why didn't Narukami tell him he would be leaving?

Simple, it was none of Minato's business.

Why hadn't Narukami asked for his number? He was the forward one, the social butterfly.

An unfair question since Minato had taken so long to even give Narukami a name to work with.

A month goes by. Things return to normal as if they'd never come unscrewed in the first place. Minato stares at the containers piled up in his sink and feels an odd sense of comfort so deep in his bones it takes him off guard. So much for reprogramming.

The next time Narukami makes plans to return to the countryside, or rather, Inaba, he informs Minato after a chipper 'good morning' in the elevator, and Minato feels more petulant than a child. Minato doesn't know how he feels about the passage of time, but even more confounding is the fact that he doesn't know what to feel about whatever was growing between him and his early-bird neighbor.

Not that anything had fundamentally changed between them, it was more that something had fundamentally changed within himself.

"Give me your number." Minato says.

Narukami makes a distracted noise, before he seems to realize what has been said. "My number?"

"Yes, I'm tired of you reporting what you'll be up to as if I'm your guardian."

"Sorry, you just seemed-" he shakes his head, lips pursing. "Never mind."

He sets Narukami's ringtone to the sound of a chirping bird, which makes the other laugh, once he coincidentally finds out.

"Your early morning habits disgust me."

"More like they annoy you. I can tell you want to punch me every time I wish you good morning."

Narukami's tone is absolutely laced with teasing. Minato's about to reply but the doors open and Narukami's already walking out. He stops suddenly, turning on his heel.

"But you know, the early bird gets the worm."

Minato has no idea what the hell that's supposed to mean, just as he has no idea why it leaves his face feeling oddly hot as he stands numbly in the lobby long after Narukami is gone.


	6. Interlude: Lobby

**Interlude: Lobby**

It had been infatuation at first glare. Something about Minato practically killing with him with his eyes due to a polite 'good morning' somehow ticked all of Yu's boxes.

He wanted to be his friend, or he wanted to talk to him. Yu was a social person, he couldn't help it. Moving away from Inaba had served to prove that he just didn't know how to keep to himself.

And sure, he got a good deal of socializing at work. He went to happy hour, he shared jokes during breaks. Everyone liked him and he quite liked everyone there too, but at the end of the day work was work, and no amount of getting along really changed that.

At the end of the day, he was still a little lonely. And somehow, his neighbor's grumpy face was just what he needed to make it all a little more bearable.

"I'm starting to think you have a type." Naoto notes, during a video call on the weekend.

"He looks nothing like Kou."

"Senpai, he kind of sounds like he does." Rise almost sounds sorry for not siding with him, and Yu just laughs, wishing he could see them all again in person.

He just had to wait a few more weeks.

A lot of things happen in a few more weeks. Yu's computer breaks twice, which results in him somehow making a breakthrough with Minato, and using his shamelessness to his advantage Yu decides to risk sharing leftovers, because try as he might to adjust portions, he always made too much. As it often was with stray cats, Minato warms up to him, in his own way. Yu's not sure if he thinks he owed him something for the meal, but they go to dinner together and he ends up a bit too excited for it, splashing his face and getting cleaned up in the office bathroom despite knowing Minato wouldn't even spare him a second glance.

He doesn't let himself hope, because he's not a teenager anymore, but he's high off of having been able to hang out with his friends again, of having been able to walk the riverbed with Nanako, and so when Minato looks at him like he cares Yu wonders if he'd missed him, even a little. Because if he did, then it wasn't all one-sided, and definitely not all in vain.

It'd be nice, if they wound up friends, maybe then Yu would tell Minato that he risked showing up a little late to work every morning just so he could hold the door for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So maybe a little Yu interlude was possible thanks to all the stuff I had in my drafts. Did anyone else highkey lowkey ship Kou and Yu at times? I don't know what it was about the sports buddies in P4 but it did something for me. This is far from a double-update but fingers crossed it's a fun read anyhow!


End file.
